Display device



April 24, 1934. REYNOLDS 1,955,769

DISPLAY DEVICE Filed Aug. 22, 1931 INVENTOR ATT R Patented Apr. 24, 1934 FATENE QFFE CE DISPLAY DEVICE Henry Reynolds, Lombard, EL, assignor to American Can Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New Jersey Application August 22, 1931, Serial No. 558,776

5 Claims.

The present invention relates to collapsible display stands and has for its object the improvement and simplification of their construction particularly the improvement in locking means for holding such stands in open display position.

The principal object of the present invention is the provision of a display stand for the reception of articles which are arranged on shelves of the stand, these shelves being so connected one with the other and so interlocked as to be rigidly held when in display position but also being collapsible into folded shipping position with the parts occupying a minimum amount of space.

Numerous other objects of the invention will be apparent as it is better understood from the following description, which, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, discloses a preferred embodiment thereof.

Referring to the drawing:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a display stand embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary detail in perspective showing a portion of one of the side walls of the upper shelf;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged transverse sectional detail through the shelving, parts being broken away, the view illustrating one side of each of the two upper shelves and a part of the locking arm for holding the shelves in display position; and

Fig. i is a side elevation of the display stand in its folded or collapsed position.

There is disclosed in the drawing as a preferred form, a display stand comprising three parallel sheet metal shelves so connected by parallel links as to be movable into open display position or into collapsed folded position. This display stand is provided with locking members for holding the shelves either in open or in collapsed position. The open position affords accessibility to articles placed on the shelves and also permits advertisement of the same.

Bent sheet metal shelves are preferably used, these comprising an upper shelf 11, an intermediate 12 and a lower shelf 13, each of the shelves provided with a front Wall 14 and side walls 15 formed by bending the metal of the respective shelves upwardly at right angles. Parallel links are pivotally connected to the respective shelves, there being provided for this purpose several pairs of links. A pair of short links 17 are disposed on opposite sides being pivoted at 18 to the side walls 15 of the middle shelf 12 and at 19 to side walls of the upper shelf 11.

A second pair of short links 21 are also similarly arranged being pivoted at 22 to the side walls of the middle shelf and at 23 to the side walls of the bottom shelf. A pair of longer links 25 are also provided, these being disposed between the two pairs of short links 17, 21 and being pivotally connected on opposite sides at 26 to the side walls of the upper shelf, at 27 to the side Walls of the middle shelf and at 28 to the side Walls of the lower shelf. These two links 25 are preferably extended downward to form legs and are connected together at their lower ends by a foot strap 29 which forms a support for the display stand when it is in open position.

As clearly illustrated in Fig. 1, the pivot connections between the links 1?, 25, 21 and the shelves 11, 12, 13 are so located as to form elements of parallelograms, the links maintaining parallelism between the shelves while permitting movement to the open display position, illustrated in this from the collapsed folded position,

illustrated Fig. i and vice Versa.

In open position the forward edge 14 of the shelf 13 rests upon the counter or other support used for the stand and cooperates with the foot part 29 to hold the display stand for display purposes.

Provision is made for locking the shelves in their open display position, this feature comprisin 9. pair of spaced locking arms 35 disposed on opposite sides of the upper and middle shelves ll, 12. Each arm 35 is pivotally mounted on the side wall of the shelf 12 at its pivot connection 18 and in display position extends upwardly beyond the upper shelf 11. A head plate 36 is used as a connection between the upper ends of the arms 35. This plate preferably has a smooth face on which suitable advertising or other legend may be applied.

This plate 36, at its sides and at its bottom edges, is flanged or'bent into side walls 37 and a bottom skirt 38. The side walls provided the connecting surfaces for the upper ends of the arms and rivets 39 secure these parts together. The arms 35 are disposed outside of the links 1'7 and may be offset at to (Fig. 3) to clear the upper edges of these links when the stand is folded.

Each arm 35 carries alocking rivet 41 which is adapted to engage within a slot 42 (Figs. 1 and 2) formed in the adjacent side wall 15 of the upper shelf. This slot 42 terminates in a circular wall forming a pocket 43 and permits locking engagement with its rivet 41 when the display stand is in its open display position.

The seating of the rivet 41 in its pocket 43, as just described, effects a rigid holding system between all of the various shelves of the stand and allows considerable weight to be imposed upon the shelves without in any way disturbing their stationary positions. In its collapsed position (Fig. 4) the rivets 41 are no longer in the slots 42 but rest, at such times, in other slots 45 also cut in the side walls 15 of the upper shelf. This interengagement between slot and rivet has the effect of loosely holding the parts of the folded stand in collapsed position. In such position the flange 38 of the head 36 strikes against the upper edges of the side walls 15 of the upper shelf 11 and prevents any scratching of the face of the head.

It is thought that the invention and many of its attendant advantages will be understood from the foregoing description and it will be apparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction and arrangement of the parts, without departing from the spirt and scope of the invention or sacrificing all of its material advantages, the form hereinbefore described being merely a preferred embodiment thereof.

I claim:

1. A foldin display stand comprising a plurality of shelves, longer and shorter pairs of parallel links pivotally connected to said shelves, the longer pair being intermediate the shorter pairs, for maintaining them in parallelism while the stand is collapsed into folded position or while it is opened into display position, and locking arms arranged at an angle to said links and pivotally connected with one of said shelves and carrying locking rivets engaging into slots cut in another of said shelves and when so engaged holding said stand in its open display position.

2. A folding display stand comprising a plurality of shelves, parallel links pivotally connected to said shelves for maintaining them in parallelism while the stand is collapsed into folded position or while it is opened into display position, and locking arms pivotally connected with one of said shelves and carrying locking rivets engaging into slots cut in another of said shelves and when so engaged holding said stand in its open display position, and the rivets of said looking arms engaging other slots cut in the said slotted shelf for holding the stand in its folded collapsed position.

3. A folding display stand comprising a plurality of shelves, pairs of parallel links pivotally connected to said shelves for maintaining them in parallelism while the stand is collapsed into folded position or while it is opened into display position, the members of one pair of said links having a foot strap connecting them together and forming a support for the stand when it is in open position, and locking arms pivotally connected with one of said shelves and carrying locking rivets for engagement with slots cut in another of said shelves and for holding said shelves separated in display position, and a head plate carried by and uniting said locking arms.

4. A folding display stand having in combination a vertical series of nearly horizontal shelves, longer intermediate links pivoted to the median parts of the sides of an intermediate shelf and to the forward end of an upper shelf and to the rearward end of a lower shelf, a pair of shorter links pivoted to the sides of a median part of an upper shelf and to the rearward part of an intermediate shelf, another pair of shorter links pivoted to the sides of the front part of an intermediate shelf and to the sides of the median part of a lower shelf, and a pair of upwardly and downwardly extending arms arranged at an angle to all of said links and pivoted to the sides of one of said shelves and detachably connected with the sides of another of said shelves.

5. A folding display stand having in combination a vertical series of nearly horizontal shelves, longer intermediate links pivoted to the median parts of the sides of an intermediate shelf and to the forward end of an upper shelf and to the rearward end of a lower shelf and extended downward to form legs for said stand, a pair of shorter links pivoted to the sides of a median part of an upper shelf and to the rearward part of an intermediate shelf, another pair of shorter links pivoted to the sides of the front part of an intermediate shelf and to the sides of the median part of a lower shelf, and a pair of upwardly and downwardly extending arms arranged at an angle to all of said links and pivoted to the sides of one of said shelves and detachably connected with the sides of another of said shelves.

HENRY REYNOLDS. 

